The early morning sun shone down as a ferryboat softly approached a pier, gliding over the crystal clear waters. The small island lay south of Malta, host to a resort and hotel, the destination of those aboard the ferry. Amongst these sunseekers were a red-haired beauty and her similarly statuesque blonde companion, speaking with American accents.

The redhead, Barbara, wore a fairly plain sundress, a white and yellow ensemble, alongside a pair of sunglasses and sandals. Kara, the blonde, meanwhile wore red yoga pants and a loose light blue blouse. They stood with the other two dozen or so tourists waiting for the boat to come to a stop. Soon enough, it did, and the crew let down the gangway to exit.

A cheerful looking greeter waited on the pier below, a tall brunette middle aged woman in a red dress. Behind her stood a group of porters in black pants and red shirts at attention, ready to take the luggage of guests to their rooms.

"Welcome to the Kokki Island Resort, esteemed guests! We hope that your stay here will be a dream come true. Our porters are ready to take you each to your rooms so that you can begin to get settled. Lunch will be served from noon onwards, and you may choose one of our six different cafes and restaurants across the island for your eating preferences..." The greeter began a speech.

"Blah blah, two sandy beaches, bar and lounge, games room, child-free environment, outdoor pool, indoor pool, fine gym facilities, yoga and crossfit classes, sauna and spa..." Kara whispered to her friend.

"Yeah, don't think I'd like her job, repeating the brochure every time the boat comes in..." Barbara replied.

They waited with the barely listening crowd as the greeter finished, and the porters began moving forward, calling names and leading people to their rooms. A young man walked forward to call Barbara and Kara away, leading them to the sixth floor, room 616. They followed him, the pair making idle chatter and not above trying to make stage-whispered comments on how cute their porter was, but he did not give any visible reaction to the teasing.

"Your room, ladies. The telephone has a preset button to call the main desk, to make enquiries, book places in facilities or classes, or to order 24/7 room service. To make calls to other rooms, please enter star 12 first, and to make calls elsewhere, please enter star 24 first. Your stay includes one hundred minutes of long distance calls at no extra charge," he explained.

"Thanks, buddy," Kara said, offering the porter a tip, which he accepted with his own thanks.

The two now alone, they unpacked their regular clothing into drawers and dressers, but did not yet open hidden compartments in their suitcases which held certain other costumes and equipment.

"Will I get the speaker recharged now, you think?" Barbara asked, holding up what seemed to be a

fairly normal albeit high-end bluetooth speaker.

Kara glanced around the room, and nodded. Barbara plugged it in, and the blonde gave a small wince as her super-senses ensured that she heard the faint ultrasonic signal as the speakers' hidden functions began working,  a scrambling signal, ensuring any hidden devices in the room would not record their words.

"I don't see anything hidden but there's a fair amount of things blocking my vision in the walls, could be anything hidden from x-rays behind them," Kara then said.

"Better safe than sorry... even if it probably sounds like there's a swarm of mice in your ears."

 "It's fine, I can tune it out. But your other theory about Mary and Courtney's a bust, they're not here. Or if they are, they're in a lead-lined bunker, I looked everywhere."

"Huh. Wonder what they are doing then?" Barbara wondered.

Shrugging, she then produced the brochure map of the resort, as well as another map taken directly from satellite imagery. Both showed the tourist destination to be spread across one large main island  and a few smaller ones covering about four square kilometres, but while the brochure showed only main structures, attractions,  and beach spots, the spysat picture had been taken to detect underground areas, and so also showed a number of unmarked areas, presumably the staff only tunnels and backrooms as well as the solar farm and battery providing the resort's power.

Some of the smaller islands seemed to have their own underground systems, likely natural caves. The brochure left a few islands off itself though, not marking them as part of the resort, with a small note saying a few islands were off limits to guests for safety. Including the third largest island overall, and the one with the largest cave network.

"So, yeah. Did a little extra snooping on my phone during the boat ride, and there doesn't seem to be anything obviously weird about the islands. This is actually the second resort, there was a previous one from the sixties that closed down in the eighties after a fire, this newer one was built in ninety-three. The name apparently means something like Owl Islands in Maltese, but ironically the only owl colony here died out decades ago before the first resort was here.."

"That's a shame..." Kara said.

"Yeah, it is. Also a shame the rest of the League aren't backing us up, having live feeds would have worked out better than this printout. As it is, we're lucky to have got this and Dick's help arranging the rooms here..." Barbara sighed.

"I know. And I don't get it. At least a dozen women have gone missing here over a year, but everyone's more focused on bigger problems. Even Kal-El's more focused on whatever this thing Luthor's doing. What's the point in being able to stop Darksied or whatever supervillain nutcase is brewing up a scheme if we're too busy worrying about them to actually save people in a regular crisis?"

"I guess even the Justice League doesn't have resources for everything.... But we can do this. And sure, maybe they'll be pissed we went against orders but maybe if Bats and the rest of the big hitters bothered to explain what they're all up to rather than compartmentalising everything.... And besides, if they don't even have Mary and Stargirl working this one, why not let us run it? We can do this ourselves, just Batgirl and Supergirl, girl power's finest!"

"With added bonus of working vacation!"

Barbara nodded agreement to that sentiment and put the maps away.

"So... we'll blend in as normal tourists and try to see if we can pick up any leads. Get some lunch, maybe head down to the beach for a bit, get some attention with the eyepopper plan? Then look around more tonight?"

"Seems good... Hopefully no one notices I don't tan or burn though," Kara said.

"Sunscreen, duh. Very good sunscreen. Trust me, when you've got red hair and skin like mine, even a Gotham summer can be lobster time if I'm not careful so I am well stocked...."

***

As the afternoon began, they reached the shimmering sands of one of the resort's designated beaches. The pair didn't seem to be reacting much to anything around them, but the two were using their training and natural abilities to observe almost everything around them. Especially the turning of heads and the admiring eyes from some other guests and staff as the two stunners walked past.

Barbara's long flowing red hair waved behind her, the purple one-piece swimsuit she wore may have sounded conservative, but it was very well fitting, like a second skin. It had a faintly glittery pattern, shimmering and sparkling as rays struck it, and seemed completely smooth on her form, barely even a crease or crevice. If it had been flesh tone she easily could have seemed nude. And yet, the one piece design ensured that the imagination had a lot to work with still, even if it did ensure the curvature of her rear or her perky medium breasts or her wide hips were very well displayed, along with her toned stomach and long smooth bare legs.

Kara in contrast wore a more simple setup, a string-tied red and blue bikini top over her own very generous chest, and the same red-blue toned shorts in a clingy spandex material, the legs only just stopping a little down her legs. She had her blonde hair tied back in a ponytail, getting looks from many admiring her own shapely form, smooth legs, and covered yet displayed curves.

This was part of their 'eyepopper' plan. Making use of their natural beauty to attract some attention, let them ask a few questions to other guests or staff within otherwise normal conversations to conceal them.

And it seemed to be working almost right away. A brown haired man in a white shirt and loose blue shorts had began flirting with them practically when they picked a spot. He was fairly well built, but the two superheroines knew he was harmless. And cute enough to tolerate for a bit...

"Don't scare off more babes, Kyle!" A muscular black haired man in tight swimtrunks taunted.

"Oh, don't worry, he's not too bad... though you're not so bad yourself," Kara said, giving the guy a look, and getting the desired cocky grin response.

"From a stunner like yourself, lady, that's quite a compliment. But nah, Kyle here's not very lucky with the ladies. Flirting all day at the poolside on Monday, and then the chick's gone the next day along with her buddy. Said she was here for two weeks total, was just on her second week starting, then vanishes off the island after Kyle speaks to her..."

"It wasn't like that, Joey! I didn't do anything to upset her, you're making me sound like a creep...." Kyle groaned.

Babs and Kara exchanged a quick glance at this. Another woman apparently missing, and recently?

"Hmm, well, now.... That's an odd one. Maybe they had some emergency and had to leave?"

"Maybe, but Kyle made a mistake. He never even got their names. Which, by the way, I'm Joey and you know my unlucky pal there. What are your names?"

The pair replied, knowing these two might at least supply a little extra knowledge about the island.

***

The two had been a decent distraction and source of information on the goings on around the resort, but as the evening approached, the two heroines in civilian guise made excuses that they'd had a long trip in, but hoped to maybe meet their new friends sometime tomorrow. Tonight, though, Kara and Babara would be having an early night. Batgirl and Supergirl, however...

The sun had set when if anyone had watched the west beach, they may have seen a shape moving across the sky, though a few clouds currently blocked the moonlight. Rather than swim, the pair had simply exploited the fact that Supergirl was, well, Supergirl.

She touched down her red boots on the sand of the off-limits island, Batgirl hopping off her back. Yellow boots landing.

Supergirl stood for a second, the clouds shifting and illuminating her in moonlight for a moment. She wore her flowing red cape, night winds making it billow along with her similarly red skirt. Her long smooth legs were bare, bar her just-below-knee length red boots, tipped with a yellow band. A 'belt' of yellow separated her skirt from her blue shirt, a tightly clinging long sleeved design that bore the familiar red and yellow Kryptonian symbol for hope. That just so happened to look like a latin alphabet S. Hair loose, the blonde locks swished like the skirt and cape.

Batgirl however was slightly stealthier in almost all black, and with her upper face hidden by a mask. Only her yellow boots, gloves, belt, cape's inner lining, and bat symbol, plus now lightly tanned lower face, betrayed anything but the shape of a shadow. That and her red hair sticking out.

"I hope if you get spotted in costume people don't start thinking that other redhead we saw at the pool is you..." Kara snarked.

"I'm not stuffing my hair in my mask, we don't all have alien powers letting us regulate body temperatures or vibrate our faces so we don't get recognised or however it is you and Big Blue don't get outed so easily..."

"Anyway, speaking of alien powers, an interesting fact about those caves on this little island. They seem to be full of lead ore or something. I can barely see into them."

"So... no x-ray vision? Good thing you can fly and I know caves. Cos, y'know, bat?"

"You're not an actual bat, Babs," Kara teased, as they walked deeper onto the island.

"Well, no, but I do have a scanner device that should help map it out a little," The redhead smirked as she pulled it from a pouch.

The device was a small transmitter mounted to a pair of goggles, that would give her a degree of night vision as well as the sonar-scan vision on a heads-up map. As it activated, Kara sighed at the sounds a human could not hear.

"Oh good, more squeaking in my ears(!)"

This smaller island held a rocky hill, with a small forest at the base. There seemed to be a few ways into the caves, and the pair picked one.

"Okay... Looks like this route branches down into an open cave that has a few more offshoots. The sonar doesn't indicate any instability in the area, but... huh..."

"Huh? What's huh?" Kara wondered.

"The scanner's getting some interference from something. I think the thing blocking your vision might actually be magical in nature," Barbara realised, having spotted similar oddities one time working with Zatanna.

"Well, at least it's not kryptonite."

"It does seem to be blocking electronic transmissions though. I doubt we can communicate out of here."

They went into the caves, but after a while, Barbara paused.

"...There's human shapes down this way, but... they're not moving, and not flesh?"

The two followed the way down. The technology and powers the two had allowed them to see the room as if fully lit, and the sight they saw was scores of shapes of stone. Many statues, all women....

The pair gasped, for these statues were clearly unnatural. For one, the nearest to them, a cowering sculpture, looked like one of the known missing women. She was topless, her arms raised to try and shield herself from some unknown entity, stone eyes and mouth wide in terror. Her stone ponytail hung loose, her bare chest rendered in marble. But her lower body showed another sign she was once human.

For on her stone pelvis, sat a red thong bikini, clashing with the pale stone of her petrified form.

Another statue strangely had her eyes closed, yet was still petrified. She wore a tattered swimsuit, having presumably been here a while. A newer victim that looked like another missing woman was completely nude somehow, while another likely missing person wore a sundress over her confused looking stone form. Two statues stood with long-dead flashlights in their hands, clothing almost decayed. Remnants of a purple dress on one, the remains of an orange sweater on the other, plus a pair of glasses on that statue's face long clouded over.

The other statues were a mix of various states. Clothed, partly clothed, nude, some with clothing showing decay, some with clothing looking almost new. Some were confused, some were terrified, some had open eyes and some had closed. And the range of outfits dated back quite some time, at least, where enough remained to really tell. Hairstyles and fashion placed some as far back as maybe the sixties, from the time of the first resort.

"These are petrified people, all of them. And this is just one part of the cave. Sonar says there's even more deeper down," Barbara said, looking over this gallery-cave and realising that these few dozen were not the only victims of whatever was doing this.

And that of course, the number of missing women far exceeded their previously known count.

"What could have done this though? A gorgon?"

"Maybe, but, some of the victims have closed eyes. Unless they closed them after meeting the gorgon's gaze..."

"...We need to check the other cave at least. Then head back. Get the League paying attention and coming down to help save these women," Kara said.

"Agreed, but... Why are they all women?" Barbara wondered, and Kara listened.

The superpowered heroine shuddered.

" If I listen I can hear something like a voice calling me in. I guess it lures in normal human women over time. Maybe that's part of the magic interference you were seeing?"

"Maybe. Shame Zatanna's not here..."

Past the tableau of petrified beauties, the two superheroines went. They moved into the next cavern, finding a similar scene. More statues, more petrified women. But to their horror, the pair saw two familiar ones against one wall...

"Oh my god, it's Mary and Courtney! They WERE here!" Barbara realised.

The petrified forms of their fellow heroines, Mary Marvel and Courtney Whitmore AKA Stargirl, stood there. The pair were frozen as if in mid fight with whatever had defeated them. Stargirl stood in her blue costume, her stone legs shown off by her shorts, and her petrified toned midriff exposed.  Her once blonde hair was now a cascade of pale marble. Her cosmic staff was held uselessly in her rocky hands.

Mary, meanwhile, was posed as if she had been about to try and take off, one hand raised in a fist. The pale marble of her legs contrasted against the softly-waving red skirt of her dress, the breeze through the caves making the cloth move on the statue of the petrified heroine. Her long hair was once brown, but now just as alabaster and marble as the rest of her and the other women, but her posture meant it had frozen slightly defying gravity, it seemed.

"....Are here, Babs, we're getting them help," Kara reminded, looking at her two friends.

Barbara nodded.

"Yeah. Let's head back and get help, ASAP."

Kara was about to move, when she paused.

"...You hear that? Something's coming, from the way we came!"

"Oh great. Time to fight a gorgon blind," Barbara said.

The sound neared as the two prepared to fight, using their ears as their main sense. Barbara switched off her goggles and removed them, the device useless without eyesight ironically, and thanks to being transparent, would offer no protection against a gaze of petrification.

However, the noise sounded... odd.

"Unless the gorgon had a haircut, I don't hear snakes," Kara realised.

"What do you hear then?"

"...Feathers and... hooting?"

The sounds grew nearer, and Barbara sighed

"I'll open my eyes to see what it actually is, and you can stop it with yours closed," She said.

"Wha- no!" Kara protested.

"Look, Kara, you have the powers here, your ears can hear better, you can fight it, or, you can get past it flying. You can get help. I can't."

"But surely we-"

"There's not another way I can think of right now, and you're the only one of us that can reach the League right away. These caves are blocking the comms, remember?"

Kara sighed.

"I really don't like this plan, Barbara..."

"Me neither, to be honest, but it's all we got."

The sound grew closer now, and Barbara nervously opened her eyes, putting her goggles back on to see in the gloom of the cave.

And her eyes grew wide in surprise at what came into the cavern.

"A... big owl? Kara, the thing's a big owl."

Said big owl gave a surprised hoot as it saw the two. Barbara winced as the glowing yellow eyes locked onto hers... but nothing happened.

And then something twigged.

"Kara, you need to fly out fast, this isn't something with a gaze!"

"What? What does it do then?" Supergirl wondered.

But it was too late. The owl-creature was startled, and let out a loud, piercing screech that echoed off the walls, and went deep into the very bones of the two superheroines.... And they froze in place. Wind blew along with the screech, billowing the loose capes of those wearing them.

Barbara stood there, eyes open, the words she was about to say trapped in her throat as a crackling sound began. What little of her tanned skin that could be seen turned pale once more, but this time grey, as she was turned to stone. Her red locks turned alabaster as they froze in marble, and her blue eyes turned into the same pale grey as the rest of her form, rendered into dull white orbs.

Kara, eyes still closed, had been about to try and take off, and was caught slightly crouching. Her legs turned to the same shade of alabaster marble as the others, her blonde hair became a cape of stone even as her actual cape and skirt billowed in the wind. Her eyes went blank, as the Girl of Steel became a Woman of Stone.

What Barbara had realised was the true nature of this creature. It was a Maltese cryptid, a monster known as a Golfu. The beast was like a screech owl, and that screech that it could emit, would petrify living creatures. Just as it had done to the dozens of statues in its lair. Just as it had done to the two superheroines Mary Marvel and Stargirl. And now, to the two superheroines Batgirl and Supergirl.

The two statues stood silently as the creature hooted in satisfaction, then left the cavern. They remained, now as petrified as the others. Slowly, their stone forms cooled down, losing the last of their body heat in the cave's gentle breeze... and there they would remain, just another pair amongst the many statues....